Coming To Lagos

Since there is a ‘Coming to America’, I figured it’s ok to share my ‘coming to Lagos’ story too. It’s a peculiar one actually, but not so much of a big deal still.

I grew up in Ibadan, Oyo state. I am a proud Ibadan geh. And forget all those funny memes that we have been subjected to, from me to you, no hard feelings.

In fact, I find it quite humbling that we have been a source of humor, giving you all a good dose of laughter, isn’t that ‘quit’? Lol

So yes, I grew up in Ibadan, and I didn’t travel much (I still don’t), and so for a lonnnnng time I never visited the aggrandized LAGOS.

When I got to Uni, for some weird reason, people around me thought I was supposed to be ashamed of the fact that I had not been to Lagos before.

Well, there was a time I belonged to their school of thought too, but I rusticated myself because of an incidence which I’ll get to very soon.

Back in the Uni, people simply assumed I lived in Lagos. The question ‘do you stay in Lagos?’ was rarely considered; ‘where in Lagos do you stay?’ was the FAQ.

In answering, I made sure I didn’t just say ‘No, I don’t stay in Lagos’, I always added ‘I’ve not even been to Lagos before’. Hehehehe, I particularly liked the look of surprise and shocked reaction that almost always followed.

I mean, you’d think I just told someone I hadn’t seen a tissue paper before.

And then some will say in conclusion, ‘you don’t even look like an Ibadan girl, you look like a Lagos girl instead’. How are they supposed to look e dakun?

The more they made a big deal out of it, the more ‘rebellious’ I became, and the less appealing I found Lagos.  I kept thinking, ‘so what if I haven’t been to Lagos before? Abeggie!

To cut the long story short, by the time I eventually came to ‘their’ Lagos, let’s just say I was no longer a teenager.

I came with a choir group I belonged to in school for the rehearsal of our upcoming concert.

Because I had made no attempt to be discreet about the fact that I had not been to Lagos, every member of the group knew.

For this reason, they all saddled themselves with the responsibility of showing me important landmarks as we moved along in the journey, so as to formally introduce me to Lagos.

I was sincerely not interested in all the ‘Buki this is Berger, Buki look! This is…..’

At a point, I had to feign sleep, to avoid being cranky. I didn’t see the point. Anyways, that was how I cut the ribbon off my ‘never been to Lagos’ status.

A simple yet unforgettable incident made me decide to never hide the fact that I had not visited Lagos before.

Years ago, when I was still in Primary school, a friend of mine came to visit me at home.

She was new in Ibadan, as her family had just moved in from Lagos. So we got talking, and she teased me that I didn’t know Lagos as much as she did, having lived there.

But I was bent on proving her wrong. When she asked me where I had been to in Lagos, (having told me earlier that they formerly lived in Mile 2) I said I wasn’t familiar with Mile 2, but I knew the nook and crannies of Mile 4.

My Uncle was within earshot during this conversation, he just chuckled and hailed me with ‘Buki, Buki, Mile 4!’. Apparently, this friend of mine also didn’t know that there was no Mile 4 in Lagos, so she just admitted that she hadn’t been to that side before.

My Uncle later told me I goofed after she left, ko si Mile 4 kankan anywhere.

I was embarrassed on behalf of myself. True story o.

So since then, I just thought, what’s the fuss about really? Lagos is just Lagos. Now that I have been in Lagos for over 3 years, my stand is still, What’s the fuss???